Thoughts & Jots: From Michigan-Ohio State to NFL flex to Myles Garrett

Things in and around the NFL, college football and more

The 2024 season still has plenty of games left. For the Cleveland Browns, it just seems over with eight losses already. It is difficult to watch games and talk about who Cleveland will draft in the Top-5 next April, but that is the reality. Last year at this time, the Browns were trying to keep the fifth seed in the playoffs and what it would take to retain the highest Wild Card position.

With a long layoff between Thursday Night Football and Monday Night Football, here are a few Thoughts and Jots:

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1. Were you able to catch the Dallas Cowboys vs. the Washington Commanders game? The Cowboys dominated the entire game and built a 20-9 lead until the fourth quarter when Washington came back with an 86-yard touchdown pass only to have former Browns kicker Austin Seibert miss the extra point, now 27-26. Yeah, that wasn’t the exciting part, though.

Dallas ran back a 99-yard kickoff return to go up by 10. Still not the exciting part. The Commanders did not lay down and kicked a 51-yard field goal with 1:40 left in the game.

Now down by one score, Washington lined up for an onside kick. Normally, only the return man can move on this XFL kickoff format, but on an onside kick, everyone can move once the kicker touches the K-ball. Seibert made the ball bounce and went right to S Juanyeh Thomas on the front row of the receiving team who then only had to split two defenders with nothing but green in front of him for another kickoff return for a touchdown.

Yep, that was the exciting portion.

The fourth quarter was like watching an Arena Football game where scoring is almost every down. An interception for a touchdown is called a “Pick Six” and a missed field goal returned for a touchdown is called a “Kick Six.” This was an onside kick returned for a touchdown, which is extremely rare. It is one of those situations that needs a name, right?

I am throwing into the ring “Quick Six.” If it catches on and I get inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a contributor, if you nominate me, I will get you to be my presenter.

By the way, 41 points were scored collectively in the fourth quarter. That set the record for the most points ever scored in Quarter #4 in NFL history but not the most points scored in any quarter, which is 49 points by the 1941 Chicago Bears.

2. Speaking of the Hall of Fame, I have been trying to get three women involved with nothing more than an exhibit. I am dealing with the Hall’s curator, Jason Akins, and attempting to get the Hall to set up a permanent display for the three women who are the most important to the sport of American Football. Before I spoke to Akins, the Hall knew nothing about these three.

The first is Violet Bidwell, who is the first owner of a pro football franchise. Her husband Charles owned the Chicago Cardinals, and when he died in 1947 just months after winning the 1947 NFL Championship, the team became the property of Violet. She attended owner’s meetings, got involved, made suggestions, and voted on league matters despite the other owners insisting she retire to some kitchen. The second woman is Pat Palinkas. She was the first woman to play professional men’s football when she was hired as her husband Steve’s placement holder. Steve was the kicker for the Orlando Panthers of the Continental Football League (1965-1969), one of two farm system leagues the NFL has funded. Pat was paid $400 a game and became a national sensation with articles in Life, Time, and other assorted national publications. The third woman is Abby Vestal. She was the kicker for the Kansas Koyotes of the American Professional Football League, an indoor entity. She is the first woman to score points in a professional men’s football game.

In the early 2000s, I did interviews with both Palinkas and Vestal for an article I wrote entitled “Women in Football” for the programs sold at Dallas Cowboys home games. Palinkas lives in the Tampa area while Vestal resides in Arkansas and plays rugby. The contributions each of these women gave to the sport of professional football needs to be recognized.

3. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and it means much more than stuffing your stomach. It is “Rivalry Weekend.” All across college football teams will square off against their most hated in-state rivalry. Mississippi State-Ole Miss, Georgia vs. Georgia Tech, Tennessee against Vanderbilt, Louisville-Kentucky, Clemson takes on South Carolina, Arizona versus Arizona State, Auburn at war with Alabama, Florida-Florida State, Perdue against Indiana, Texas-Texas A&M, and Virginia vs. Virginia Tech are some of the highlighted games. The biggest rivalry game is not an in-state contest but is considered the nation’s biggest rivalry game: Michigan and Ohio State. Why isn’t Michigan’s largest rivalry with Michigan State? Why doesn’t Ohio State consider an in-state opponent such as Cincinnati? Where did this hatred begin?

The origins of the border conflict began with “The Toledo War.” At the time, Ohio was already a state, and Michigan was still a territory. When Congress would draw boundary lines for states, they used as many straight lines as possible. Michigan was set to become the nation’s 26^th state in 1837. The top of Ohio had a straight line, then looped up to include Toledo on the far Northeast tip, which was a key shipping port along Lake Erie.

Michigan wanted the bottom boundary of their newborn state to come straight across, which would then include Toledo and give the new state a shipping hub already in place. The dispute gained momentum until both states deployed their local militia to set up on both sides of the Maumee River that came off the lake at Toledo. The land was referred to as “The Toledo Strip.” Shots were fired for two weeks, but there weren’t any casualties.

In the end, Congress offered a compromise where Toledo would remain in Ohio, and the new State of Michigan would receive the upper section of land that was discussed as being a potential separate state. That northern region’s mineral wealth was a godsend to the citizens of Michigan. Ohioans and Michiganders have despised each other ever since. The game played annually on Thanksgiving weekend is just the pinnacle.

4. In the Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game, two things showed out yet hardly anyone is talking about them:

T.J. Watt of the Steelers is a pass-rushing guru with 7.5 sacks so far this year, yet did the TV announcer even utter his name at all? Maybe? No? The point is, OT Jack Conklin took care of Watt’s ability to disrupt the passing game. Watt finished with four tackles of which only one was a solo tackle. As long as Conklin is healthy, he is an exceptional tackle. We all know he gets hurt quite a bit and that’s the issue with him.

The second thing that happened was M.J. Emerson’s day. In the first quarter, DC Jim Schwartz had Denzel Ward and his Pro Bowl hardware covering Pittsburgh’s best receiver George Pickens. The receiver tore up the Browns to the tune of 41 yards in the first quarter. On the final play of the quarter, he snagged a seven-yard pass that converted a third down into a new set of downs. Schwartz then put Emerson on Pickens who shut him down to the tune of seven yards for the remainder of the game.

5. With the Browns now at 3-8-0, nobody is talking about playoffs. Instead, the discussions are focused on mock drafts for next April. A lot of folks want a receiver, or a quarterback or an offensive tackle early in the draft. I think the Browns should finally invest in a young stud linebacker early.

We do not know if JOK will be healthy going forward when he returns, or if he returns at all. Regardless, why not get a guy who is going to make a ton of tackles and not have to leave the field on third downs? Let’s be known for the team that will stick you, be physical, and aggressive.

In Round 2, Jihaad Campbell (6’-3”, 244 pounds) of Alabama is a tackling machine with 4.52 speed. So far, he has 97 tackles. Round 3 will find Oregon’s Jeffrey Bassa (6’-2, 235 pounds), who is a leader and very physical. Barrett Carter (6’-1”, 230) of Clemson in Round 4 is always around the ball with speed (4.55). Oklahoma’s Danny Stutsman (6’-4”, 241) in Round 5 is a gem with three straight seasons of 100+ tackles.

I do like the development of LB Winston Reid who is a heavy hitter. Let’s keep this growing, get some dynamite tacklers in-house, and be known for it.

6. I am on the NFL’s media list, but I also get information from both the CFL, UFL, and Arena League. After last year, the UFL stated that expansion could be on the horizon, but wanted to continue to develop their core teams and build up fanbases first. The UFL is now announcing that they will indeed expand but have not offered a timeline. The UFL does not have individual team owners, so the league owns everything.

But get this: instead of the UFL taking a visit to prospective cities, looking at stadium options, discussing stadium leases, and then deciding which city to add a new club to, they are soliciting offers for expansion. This means they want cities to court them.

In the press release, it states: “In its search to identify the strongest markets to support its ambitious growth goals, the UFL is looking at several core attributes when selecting its new cities, including fan interest and existing sports culture, geography and population and venue and infrastructure availability.” I just think it is the opposite approach of what all other leagues have done as they grew their leagues. They want cities to make offers. So, what if a city like Topeka, Kansas (TV market #140) gives the best presentation and offers the most incentives/money? Yet a place like Sacramento (TV market #20), Orlando (#16), or San Diego (#30) replies with a “Yeah, we will take a team if you place it here” attitude and promises little, yet is really the best opportunity with a larger demographic.

I asked Anthony Miller who covers the UFL for Sports Illustrated about his opinion. “(The UFL) should be going after the bigger markets and pick ones that will have success. I’m not as excited about it as everyone else is. Without an improvement on attendance and TV ratings, expansion doesn’t mean a thing.”

7. A look at the Browns schedule shows that Cleveland beat the 8-4-0 Ravens and the 8-3-0 Steelers, who will probably both make the post-season. Yet, the Browns got toasted by the Las Vegas Raiders, New York Football Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and Cincinnati Bengals. All of these are some of the worst clubs this year. Just think what this year’s season would be like if Cleveland had won the majority of games against the weaker teams. How can they defeat the better teams yet succumb miserably to the bottom feeders?

8. UFC Champion Conor McGregor was found guilty of sexual assault against a woman stemming from an incident that occurred in 2018. Although he does not face any criminal charges or prison time, his victim was awarded $257,000 by a High Court in Ireland, his homeland. Sponsors are dropping like flies. Proximo Spirits produces Proper No. 12, an Irish whiskey, and Forged Irish Stout beer which McGregor has been the face of the products since 2018. Proximo has pulled the plug on McGregor’s commercials and print ads. In addition, video game developer Interactive declared it was eliminating their association with McGregor who had been a side character in the company’s game “Hitman.”

9. Last season the Browns finished with 11 wins and made the playoffs. They had the NFL Coach of the Year, NFL Assistant Coach of the Year, the Defensive Player of the Year, plus the Comeback Player of the Year. Five players were selected for the Pro Bowl: Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward, Joel Bitonio, Amari Cooper, and David Njoku. There were also six alternates: Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Ethan Pocic, Corey Bojorquez, Dustin Hopkins, Grant Delpit, and Wyatt Teller.

This year? Expect to see Garrett to be named to his sixth Pro Bowl and be voted First Team All-Pro. Other than that, Bojorquez is having a Pro Bowl season. So was JOK before he became injured. Bitonio? Maybe. Can you think of anyone else? The Browns won’t be blanked, but it will be close.

10. Before the season began, the NFL schedulers loved Cleveland. They set up four Prime Time games: November 21 and December 19 – Thursday Night Football vs. Steelers and Bengals, respectively, December 29 Sunday Night Football against the Miami Dolphins, and the January 5 game against the Baltimore Ravens which never had a time but was thought to be broadcast on Prime Time for the division. Now it is just a yawner in which most likely neither club may play their starters. The Bengals and Dolphins have fallen flat this year so the NFL has already flexed out of the Bengals game and will probably do the same with the Miami contest and insert a game like the Green Bay Packers/Minnesota Vikings instead.